On Wednesday, the team was awarded ex-Cowboys returner Lucky Whitehead off the waiver wire. A corresponding transaction hasn't been announced.

Whitehead, 25, gives the Jets arguably their best returner since Leon Washington, who last played for the team in 2009. With the Cowboys his first two seasons, Whitehead averaged 25.6 yards per kick return, and 6.9 per punt. He averaged a career-high 28.3 yards per kick return with a long of 79 last year.

The Jets return game-- and special teams as a whole -- has been dreadful the last two years, especially in 2016. According to Football Outsiders, the Jets had a weighted special teams efficiency rating of negative 7.1, which ranked dead last in the NFL. That included a negative 6.4 kick, and negative 7.0 punt return rating.

While few doubt Whitehead's ability on the field, his off-the-field character was brought into question this week. Whitehead was allegedly charged with shoplifting on June 22, then failed to appear for arraignment on July 6. When a warrant was issued for Whitehead's arrest this week, the Cowboys cut him.

Upon reviewing the June 22, 2017 arrest of an individual named "Rodney Darnell Whitehead, Jr.", the police department is confident that the man charged with petit larceny, and who is subsequently being sought on an active warrant for failure to appear in court, is not Lucky Whitehead of the Dallas Cowboys. The man charged on the morning of June 22 was not in possession of identification at the time of the encounter; however, did verbally provide identifying information to officers, which included a name, date of birth, and social security number matching that of Rodney Darnell Whitehead, Jr. Officers then checked this information through the Virginia Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) database. The DMV photo on file was then used to compare to the man who was in custody. Officers acted in good faith that, at the time, the man in custody was the same man matching the information provided. At this point, the police department is also confident in confirming that Mr. Whitehead's identity was falsely provided to police during the investigation. The police department is currently seeking the identity of the man involved in the incident. Since the identifying information provided by the arrestee during the investigation was apparently false, the police department is working with the Prince William County Commonwealth Attorney's Office to clear Mr. Whitehead from this investigation. The police department regrets the impact these events had on Mr. Whitehead and his family.

The Cowboys have since stood by their decision to release Whitehead.

"We made a move that we thought was in the best interest of the Dallas Cowboys," coach Jason Garrett told reporters Tuesday.

Whitehead figures to take over as the starting kick and punt returner when training camp opens July 29 (the Jets report the day before). He will also receive some reps with the receivers.

In organized team activities and minicamp, rookie running back Eli McGuire received the bulk of the special teams work. While the Jets like his upside at the position, he doesn't have much experience (even in college) returning.